Now shifting you smoothly across 11 cogs.

SRAM now delivers 22 gears with its new Force groupset. It's called 'True 22,' as the 11-speed drivetrain allows you to utilize every one of these gears, in any combination, without adding any weight to the already outstanding Force drivetrain system. The Force 22 Rear Derailleur stands in as an integral component of the new groupset, calibrated for 11 speeds using the same innovative technologies that have made its Red group an industry leader when it comes to exact, predictable shifting under the world's most demanding riding conditions.

When SRAM first introduced its groundbreaking 10-speed Red component group, the heart of the design was 1:1 Exact Actuation technology. This means that with each shift the derailleur pulls the same exact length of cable, regardless of what gear you're in. 1:1 is simple to set up, it stays in adjustment longer, and it provides laser-accurate shifting. This advancement sent competitors scrambling to one-up SRAM. Its engineers didn't buy the hype, and instead they put massive efforts into improving their 10-speed drivetrain. The result is that the new Force 22 Rear Derailleur benefits more directly from the lessons learned over the life of Red than if SRAM were to start from scratch. Today, they've built from that 10-speed foundation, bumping the number of gears to 11. For us, in addition to the added gearing, we receive even tighter shifts than before as we now have smaller gaps between cogs.

The pulleys of the Force 22 Rear Derailleur were the main focus for SRAM engineers during the development of the new group, which now adopt the once-Red-exclusive AeroGlide Pulley System. SRAM optimized the jockey wheel's profile so that the chain will glide more efficiently over the tooth profile as it threads through the cage. This helped silence a notably noisy drivetrain and enhanced chain movement across the cassette. Adding to this, SRAM's R&D team developed an elastomer coating to further quell pulley noise. The SRAM Force 22 Rear Derailleur also received a new spring-fixed barrel adjuster for incremental cable adjustment and durability against impact.

Given the mechanics of DoubleTap shifting paired to the new 11-speed calibration, please note that SRAM recommends that you use a complete SRAM Force 22 groupset, including shifters, both derailleurs, cassette, chain, and crankset.

Comment on Greg Celentano's answer:

Good for the price

After my expensive SRAM Red 22 rear derailleur exploded, bent my derailleur hanger, knocked my wheel way out of true, knocked a huge chip of paint from my chain stay, and left me stranded in the middle of no where I decided to go for the less expensive Force. Have ridden SRAM for a long time now and never an issue, but this was way too much!!!!

Comment on Awesome Possum's answer:

Sorry, couldn't figure this out from Sram's site. Are there technically 2 colors for this derailleur (grey or black) with this one being black, or is there only one color option in total produced by Sram for this model?

Comment on Awesome Possum's answer:

Sorry, couldn't figure it out from Sram's site. Are there actually two colors for this derailleur (grey and black) and this is the black one? Or is there only one color option in total produced by Sram for this model?

Have an answer for ?

Solid performance with medium cage

Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer

I've got about 800 miles on a medium cage version running 11-32 cassette. Shift performance is very good and both setup and adjusting is easy. Shifts well under heavy load (when required) and hasn't required much attention at all.

Does a fine job managing chain slack across all gear combos in rough terrain (setup on a cyclocroos bike for trail use).

Have an answer for James H.?

Sorry that it is not more clearly labeled, but the one-size does refer to the short cage option. This should take care of cassettes upto a 28 tooth cassette, and you would need to go with a medium cage for anything larger. Feel free to email at Atierney@backcountry.com with any other questions that you might have.

Comment on Andrew T 's answer:

Excellent Performance!

Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer

This rear derailuer provides great performance, I am using the WiFli version and the setup is simple. The shifts have been reliable with no mis-shifts. I am using a Shimano 9000 chain and the Sram system does not care one bit. Also the derailuer does a great job of taking up slack variation my Q-rings produce with no problems.

Have an answer for Dustin Lehman?

Rear derailleur hangers are specific to bikes so you would need to purchase one that is specific to your bike. If you need assistance finding a hanger, don't hesitate to email me at mfarr@backcountry.com